After its year-long platinum jubilee celebrations, the Seshadripuram Ramaseva Samithi’s 76th Ramanavami music festival is all set to usher in a new chapter. This time round, the Samithi has roped in a galaxy of youth performers for its Yuva Sangeethothsava from April 17 to May 10.
To be held in the open at Seshadripuram College, the event will witness more than two dozen performances. “Our committee decided to veer away from the usual senior and junior concerts and opened up the evenings entirely to fresher, younger voices on the classical Ramothsava platform,” says Sri Ramakrishnan, secretary, Seshadripuram Ramaseva Samithi. “The classical world today has youngsters brimming with talent, deserving the main slot. This segment helps us showcase their prodigious expertise.”
The late V Tarakaram, a senior advocate who served as the secretary of the Seshadripuram Samithi for nearly 15 years until 2018, writes in the history of the Samithi that while south Bengaluru already had the Ramaseva Mandali helmed by SVN Rao from the late 1930s, delighting music connoisseurs in Chamarajpet, CD Gopala Iyengar (of the erstwhile stationers, Gopalan & Co) from Seshadripuram with public-spirited citizens wanted to meet the need for Ramanavami music concerts in North-West Bengaluru.
Iyengar with support from G Narasimhamurthy (of Kalyan Cafe), Narasinga Rao Mane, a businessman, Sripadachar, a teacher at the Arya Vaidya Shala and V Krishnamurthi, a lawyer, visited people and sourced funds to begin the Seshadripuram Samithi.
Justice E S Venkataramaiah, a Chief Justice of India, was also associated with the Samithi. “From the year 1948, star musicians in classical music have graced the Samithi which functioned with funds generated from patrons,” Ramakrishnan says.
Stars of this year’s show
There will be 25 performances this year, opening with a nadaswara recital by Mylai Karthikeyan. “We have consciously included both individual achievers chasing their passion such as Rahul Vellal, Suryagayatri, Dhanya Dinesh Rudrapatna and Rithvik Raja, as well as youngsters taking forward their family legacy.”
The musical heirs include Ramani Shankar, son of Carnatic vocalist Bangalore S Shankar; Omkarnath Havaldar, son of Hindustani maestro Nagaraj Rao Havaldar; Medha Vidyabhushana, daughter of Carnatic vocalist Vidyabhushana; violinists Sumanth and Malavi Manjunath, children of Mysore Manjunath; Kruthi Vittal, wife of violinist Vittal Rangan; Lavanya Krishnamurthy, daughter of violinist TS Krishnamurthy, violinist G Pranavi, daughter of percussionist Guruprasanna; Varijashree Venugopal daughter of flautist Venugopal; Sindhu R, daughter of ghata vidwan Raghavendra Prakash; Medha Manjunath wife of percussionist Vinodh Shyam; JK Yoga Kirtana daughter of veena vidushi Yoga Vandana; Ranjani Vasuki, daughter of Nagavalli Nagaraj; and flautists Heramba and Hemantha, children of mridangist Ambale Satyaprasad.
“Ramanavami is an auspicious festival celebrated across the country and music is linked to our mythology, philosophy and culture. Our Samithi is among the pioneers who established this tradition in the city. The young brigade is here to take this forward in creative ways,” says Ramakrishnan, adding that other events will include a discourse by Dushyanth Sridhar, a unique story-telling and music presentation by Vinay Varanasi and Vivek Sadasivam and an instrumental ensemble by the students of percussionist Anoor Ananthakrishna Sharma.
Forging the path ahead
Ramani Shankar, who will be performing at the Samithi on April 19, says, beyond musical ideologies, it is his father, S Shankar’s discipline and values instilled in him over the years that has become intrinsic to his lifestyle.
“I have been performing with him for 15 years now, and every concert has been a learning experience — from performance requirements to training oneself to be seated on the platform for three hours. My father believes that apart from one’s upbringing, it is also one’s assimilation, feel, perceptive abilities and dogged passion that helps enhance a recital. Performances have to be incidental to gratifying your musical experiences, and not the goal.”
There are many aspects of learning that he cherishes, Ramani says. “From food choices, the focus required in understanding the padhati (tradition) of presentation, the lucidity and perfection of handling lyrics or even concert packaging, all are required for a balanced offering. My father, who recently received the Central Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and has five books on music to his credit, has been my guru and inspiration. He did not lay out any rules. I grew up in an atmosphere of music with performers and teachers.”
Born in Kolar and brought up in Bengaluru, Ramani is an A-grade Akashavani artiste, and is married to classical musician Ramya Ramani. Ramani grew up in a family of musicians. “From my paternal grandmother, Rajamma Sastry in Shimoga, a vocalist who initiated my father into music, to my mother, Swarna Shankar and sister Ranjani, we were all immersed in classical music and are training students now.”
The Ramanavami Music Fest will be held at Seshadripuram College premises, Nagappa Road from April 17 to May 10. Entry is free. For more details, please visit the SSRSS website.
